Annatto (E160b) - Problems with beige food?

[Didge1]

I have suffered with almost continuous IBS symptoms for 10 years now. Intense stomach pain a few hours after eating (usually night times), followed by the feeling of glass passing through my bowels, wind, bloating, cramps and urgent, rather explosive trips to the toilet. I usually self-starve for a couple of days until my bowels recover enough to face food again. An ultrasound scan at my doctors practice confirmed my bowels were highly inflamed.

By the process of eliminating ingredients I have finally found the source of my problems, its often located at the very end of the ingredient list. The culprit is a natural food colourant by the name of "Annatto" or the European name "E160b". Wikipedia and Google will tell you all about it.

(The other E160’s suffixed with a, c, d, e etc do not contain annatto.)

Unfortunately, annatto is used within a wide range of products, including biscuits, pies, pastries, ice cream, cheese, otherwise healthy foods, and even in multi-vitamin supplements. A list of typical foods containing annatto can be found here:

uk.openfoodfacts.org/additi...

Eliminating this one ingredient has utterly transformed my life for the better. My bowels are normal, and surprisingly my head is a lot clearer too. After 10 days of avoiding annatto, my permanent beer belly has almost flattened too.

I do not consider this a trigger for my IBS, I do not even believe I had IBS, I now passionately believe I just have an allergic reaction to "Annatto". In terms of my sensitivity, eating just 1 pringle containing annatto is enough to trigger the pain. After eating a pie glazed with annatto from my local butcher I get close to calling an ambulance.

Thankfully, it is quite easy to eliminate this one ingredient, certainly a lot easier than some of the other diets we endure, and the results should be fairly obvious within a few days. I sincerely hope this has a positive impact on other sufferers in a similar position to myself.

If you do identify this allergen as the cause of your IBS symptoms, then please contact your doctor, as in larger quantities this type of allergy can be life threatening.

As a downside, I now need to take my reading glasses to the supermarket, and I'm also going to need smaller trousers.

Please spread the word,

Didge.

[BabsyWabsy]

That's interesting. Annatto is in all sorts of things, but I have never heard of this reaction before. Have you seen this? rbht.nhs.uk/news/new-type-f...

[Didge1 in reply to BabsyWabsy]

Hi Babsy,

Yes I have seen that page thank you, although I'm long-off getting allergy testing as yet.

Here's a comprehensive list of side affects compiled by the Australian "Fedup" organisation, IBS-like bowel problems feature, as do some other very worrying conditions.

fedup.com.au/images/stories...

Didge.

[BabsyWabsy in reply to Didge1]

Thanks Didge, the aussies are much better at this than we are.

[StrawberrySmootie]

Well done on finding the cause. Whittling the culprits down to a food colouring must have been hard work.

[Didge1 in reply to StrawberrySmootie]

Hi Strawbs,

Pies from my local butcher did it. No matter which filling I chose, they all gave me serious stomach pain, bowel pain and then, well lets not go there.

It must have been the pastry, but I'm fine with wheatflour, margarine, salt and vegetable oil, that just left annatto. I had never heard of it, but Google and Wikepedia suggested I may be on to something.

Avoiding it for a few days, and then eating a little proved it for me.

I would urge anybody in a similar position to myself to avoid it for a few days, just in case.

Didge.

[StrawberrySmootie]

I'm impressed. Good job your butcher is willing to give out the secret pastry recipe. Never thought people would add colouring to it. Thought it'd be free from that from a butcher, just egg wash maybe.

[Didge1]

Thankfully natural additives must be listed in the UK & EU. I believe in the US they can be listed as "natural color". My butcher uses Annatto as a glazed eggwash over the top, so very small quantities to make me extremely sick. The pies are uncooked but they do appear brown, as if cooked. Its such a pitty because their pies are exceptional.